policy Page 9

In 2012, the U.S. Congress adopted a new bill to govern surface transportation programs through September 2014. That bill, referred to now as MAP-21, provides opportunities for creative communities to develop good networks of trails and active transportation facilities. In our third post of this series, we examine the TIGER Program.

Created by the Affordable Care Act in 2010, the Prevention Fund is the nation's first large dedicated source of funds for preventing health problems. As we see in the above examples, making it easier for people to regularly walk or bike is a simple but powerful preventative medicine. Thanks to the Prevention Fund, relatively small investments in promoting walking and biking are saving the nation many billions of dollars in future healthcare costs.

Here at Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, we got a lot of love for the Prairie State. Illinois is doing some terrific things related to its trails and bike- and walkability, from downtown Chicago to the rural reaches of the southern part of the state.

Rails-to-Trails Conservancy is leading the effort to provide education and resources related to MAP-21. In this blog series, we demonstrate how communities can leverage the programs funded by MAP-21. In this first piece, we examine the Surface Transportation Program, or STP.

Earlier today the Budget Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives hosted a hearing on the solvency of the Highway Trust Fund. As generally acknowledged, current funding sources for the Trust Fund (notably gasoline and diesel taxes) are not sufficient to maintain a reliable transportation system. You can read all the testimony from the hearing at the House website here.

Florida's decision this week to set aside $50 million for the creation of a 275-mile cross-state trail is not only great news for those of us who love trails, biking, riding and hiking - it is also a tremendous shot in the arm for thousands of main street businesses and the state's economy.

Yesterday, President Obama proposed a budget that would keep funding for core transportation programs even with the levels authorized in MAP-21, while adding $50 billion for immediate funding of transportation projects in key areas. The proposal also takes aim at some non-DOT programs of interest to the trail and active transportation constituencies.

Last month, we posted our analysis of the impact of sequestration on the nation's trails, and biking and walking infrastructure. On March 1, as scheduled, federal agencies were subject to mandatory funding cuts. As we expected, monies in the Highway Trust Fund were protected from cuts, and programs funded with these monies continue as normal.

There has been a lot of news coverage and analysis recently of a federal government sequestration and its potential impacts. At Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, our experienced policy and research staff have been mining their sources and sorting through all available information to estimate what impact sequestration could have on our movement for better trails, biking and walking.

Over the past few weeks, the trails, walking and biking community, including Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, has been very focused on what the impending departure of U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood will mean for federal policy and funding of investments in active transportation.

Earlier this morning, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy's Pat Tomes addressed a United States House of Representatives legislative briefing in Washington, D.C. on the economic benefits of rail-trails and trail development across America.